Jamie Oliver admits: “I've been pretty miserable”
He’s built an empire worth hundreds of millions of dollars, boasts legions of fans and has a beautiful young family, but Jamie Oliver says his job is often “pretty miserable”.
The celebrity chef, 42, confessed in an interview with Radio Times that, while his job has brought him fame and fortune, it hasn’t brought him much happiness.
“When you’re truly happy, I don’t think that you’re pushing yourself,” he explained. “But I’ve been pretty miserable. It isn’t nice. I don’t know if I’d prescribe my career to anyone else. I don’t say I have regrets, but it’s complex.
“It’s quite a lonely place. It still does get to me about once a year. I do wobble. I’m pretty tough, but I’m human. The public only see one third of what I actually do for a job. The press will beat the s**t out of me until they feel sorry for me. Then they’ll build me back up again.”
Oliver’s breakout TV series The Naked Chef propelled him to stardom in 1999, and in the years since, he’s become only the second UK author (after J.K. Rowling) to sell more than £150 million ($270 million) worth of books.
In the candid interview, Oliver also said he wanted to make peace with Gordon Ramsay, calling their eight-year feud “childish”.
“I don’t think he liked me taking the high ground. I think that’s basically it. So, I’m going to take the high ground now and say I wish him all the best, and all success. Good luck to him.
“We have both got kids, and I don’t know what sort of example we’re setting if we’re arguing like we’re in the playground."